Essay On The Four C’s Of Leadership

The four C’s of nursing leadership are courage, commitment, confidence and competence. These four C’s will enable a nurse leader to embrace and fulfill his duty. The first C is courage and it will enable the nurse to accept risk. Courage is a much valued leadership virtue. There is always a certain level of risk associated with pursuing once goal. Courage will enable a nurse to think above these risks and take the first step toward the goal. It is also required to face difficulties that arise while pursuing the path leading to a goal. It is very difficult to define courage, though it is linked to fearlessness, it is not always the lack of fear. Very often a person’s determination and need, will provide him the courage or the mental strength required to pursue a goal and lead others towards the goal. The second C of leadership is Commitment, and this virtue motivates the nurse leader to embrace the values of the profession and serve the community. The third C of leadership is confidence. Confidence will enable a nurse leader to identify and pursue opportunities that take the team towards achieving the goal. It will also assist the nurse to function independently and take independent decisions, as the situation warrants. A person is more confident in handling a situation that he/she is exposed to, when compared to a completely new situation. Experiences creates awareness and this in turn creates confidence. Competence or skillfulness of a nurse leader will determine the success or completion of the goal. Though many know what it takes to be a nurse leader, only a competent nurse leader will come out successful. Competence enables effective application of theoretical knowledge into practice. Communication is an important competence that a nurse leader will require to handle the conflict between professional and personal needs that was discussed in classroom. The nurse in the video can improve communication can be improved by using being more clean and clear in communicating. (Balzer-Riley, 2008; Hogan & Costello-Nickitas, 2009)

References:

Balzer-Riley, J. (2008). Communication in nursing. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby/Elsevier.
Hogan, M., & Costello-Nickitas, D. (2009). Nursing leadership and management. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.